He is in hospital and he was thrilled, and a little overwhelmed, to see his needlepoint all finished… and so was I. I don’t think he could quite believe that he had stitched it. It got a few admiring comments from the other patients too – which was nice for dad.

I am doing the finishing touches to the needlepoint my dad has stitched… just filling in some gaps, adding a bit of border and then stretching it to make it square(ish).

I absolutely LOVE the design and colours – by Kaffe Fassett of course 🙂

Then I shall make it into a cushion with some fancy pompom edging. His 89th birthday is in a couple of weeks so it will be nice to finish it by then.

Finishing off…

Also in this photo you can see my Indian Cow needlepoint being stretched – it was terribly off-square even though I had used a frame… I gave this one a good soak before starting to stretch it – just relieved the colours didn’t run!!! I usually just spray the surface and tug it into shape as I pin it out – but as it was so bad I thought I should be tougher with it. Its looking ok at the moment.

For the Indian Cow I think I will try something different to display it – possibly on some wood. If that doesn’t work, then it will become another cushion.

This photo was actually taken last week – I am now about an inch above the horns – and I have calculated that I have about 12.5 hours worth of stitching left. I timed myself stitching one row – 22 minutes.

I give mum and dad each needlepoint kits for Christmas and/or birthdays – they both really enjoy stitching them. I show them catalogues or take my computer so they can choose which ones they want, and sometimes I surprise them. They stitch them and I “finish” them.

Mum chose this needlepoint kit and I gave it to her for Christmas a year ago. She has spent a year stitching it and has passed it to me to “finish” it. Generally this means a little tidying up and blocking and stretching it to make it square. Then I make it into a cushion or wall hanging and pass it back.

This time, when she gave it to me for finishing, she said it was for my birthday and that I could finish it for myself – how lovely is that!

This kit came with beads for embellishment – and so that is what I am working on at the moment…

Beading the needlepoint…

My mum’s right arm is very weak (she is right handed) and so she has to rely on using her left hand. Even though she loves doing it, I know how much effort it is for mum to stitch, thread a needle, start and end each colour change – and she does it all so cheerfully and carefully – she is an inspiration.

So, thanks mum for this lovely tapestry – I am making it into a cushion with a velvet backing and possibly some fringing too… I am loving it! Can’t wait to finish it and give it back to mum to wrap it for my birthday 🙂

… its all background stitching now. I have been toying with the idea of copying some of the paisley motifs from the rug and using them in a border to liven up the edges a bit (and me…)… I am not sure…

… moving down the canvas…

… I do love this design. I am trying to do some stitches every day…

On the quilting front, the quilt I am making for my friend is now quilted, the binding made and attached, and I am now sewing the binding down by hand (all 400 inches…) Its coming along well… I am loving this quilt…

Not much happening on the quilting front at the moment because I have rediscovered my unfinished needlepoint…

Indian Cow

… and I am thoroughly enjoying myself. This is a lovely design by Isobel Hunt. I think her work is really delicate. The design is simply drawn onto the canvas and you follow directions for the colours you use and refer to a full sized colour photo where you can easily see the individual stitches. Many of the areas require you to blend 2 strands of thread which is how you get such a smashing shaded effect – I just love this. AND the kits come in a velvet bag which converts to a zippered backing for the cushion – isn’t that a clever idea?

I have done a few needlepoints over the years but only one was on a colour printed canvas – and I found that really difficult to follow… I couldn’t easily see where one colour finished and another colour started and the result was a bit disappointing – and the kit didn’t include a chart. All my other “tapestries” have been done from charts so I can see clearly where each colour goes.

Elizabeth Bradley designs include a full colour chart along side the colour printed canvas so you can see exactly where to stitch – I really like those designs and I have completed 2 of hers. They are worked in cross stitch and not tent/half cross stitch, which means the canvas doesn’t distort. I was planning on making all four of her Victorian Flowers designs and then making them into a rug… I did start the third design (Winter Wreath) and the chart for the fourth in the series (Spring Basket) is in her book… but it all seems a bit daunting now…

I think the latest batch of Isobel Hunt’s needlepoints have colour printed canvas which is a bit disappointing for me. However, these new kits do include a symbol chart so I am hoping Santa will bring me the really pretty Tibetan Donkey kit for Christmas. If I think the colour printing will get in the way, I can always turn it over and stitch on the back directly from the chart instead 🙂

In the meantime I had better get on and finish the Indian Cow… and then get started on the really lovely Egyptian Camel design which is sitting here patiently awaiting its turn….